Golden’s Buffalo Rose, one of Colorado’s oldest bars, is closing for restoration

A rendering of Golden’s Buffalo Rose saloon, which is closing for a year-long restoration this month. (Provided by Buffalo Rose)

Depending on who you ask and how you classify a bar, Golden’s Buffalo Rose just might be the state’s oldest continuously-operating saloon. Until Nov. 18 that is, when owner Chris Cone will shut down the watering hole and music venue for a year-long renovation.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Cone, who purchased the Rose in April 2016, said of the impending remodel. “It needs it. It’s a bit dilapidated. It’s way anachronistic; it may have looked good in the ’80s, but it doesn’t fit into downtown Golden now.”

As far as Cone knows, this is the first time that the Rose, which first opened in 1859, will be closed for an extended period of time.

The building’s significance to the state of Colorado is huge — its second floor served as the first public hall for the territory’s (the Rose pre-dates Colorado as a state) capital of Golden. Colorado’s earliest laws were created and voted on there, and Generals Grant and Sherman both stayed on the property.

In addition to slinging beers, the Rose has also housed a paper mill, a grocery store and a hotel; it’s been the scene of more than one shootout, and, if you’re a believer, it’s home to the ghosts of some sketchier wild west characters.

So yes, the Buffalo Rose has seen some things. And now it’s ready to be brought into the twenty-first century. (While still maintaining its historical charm, of course.)

Cone will be replacing all of the plumbing and electrical systems, adding a commercial kitchen and restoring all of the facades to look more like the original — and to better fit into Golden’s thriving downtown scene.

The new look will also bring a new menu, with traditional American and Latin-influenced food coming out of the kitchen.

“It’s not been known for its food,” Cone said. “It’s kind of a dive bar.”

But don’t worry. Cone isn’t going to take away the classic beers and replace them with fancy craft brews. The Coors Brewery is, after all, just two blocks away. While he does plan on adding more cultivated cocktails to the menu, he’ll continue to honor that “dive bar” status with a tried-and-true (and local) beer list.

“It will continue with the same use, just enhanced,” he said.

That means that the Rose will still be a comfortable spot at which to listen to live music and down a Coors, just a little spiffed up. (And that spiffiness means maybe you’ll want to host a wedding or bar mitzvah there. Who even knows?)

Stop by for a beer before Nov. 19, when the Buffalo Rose takes a break until Fall 2018.

Allyson Reedy is first and foremost an eater. While her affinity for food was detrimental to her dreams of modeling swimwear, it helps her tremendously when writing about local restaurants for the Denver Post.